Don't Panic!
by IUseGoldenInk
Summary: Danny was straight. With his tall, dark, and handsome appearance, it was easy to understand why the girls flocked to him. Danny wasn't attracted to guys, not even the new guy – masculine, funny, and gay Ethan. Danny was straight...right? Slash. Adapted from peopleinducenausea
1. I'll Stand By You

Chapter One:

I hate Mondays.

In the next room, Boyd was screwing some chick. It was my day off and I wanted to _sleep in_. Was that concept so foreign to my dumbass roomies? I staggered out of bed and wandered down the hall toward Boyd's room. I threw the door open, ignoring the fact that I was only wearing boxers and socks. The chick was writhing on top of Boyd, whose head shot up from the mattress in bewilderment.

"Danny!" he howled, face contorted in anger. "GET THE FUCK OUT!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP!" I shouted back, slamming his door behind me. I heard his whore giggling as I sauntered down the hall. Isaac, roommate number two, was sitting on the couch, nose buried in a book, headphones secured over his ears. I kicked him playfully and he sent me a glare. Roommate number three, Jackson, was shoving my plates into a box labeled "Jackson's Shit."

"What are you doing?" I asked, voice hoarse.

"Getting my stuff packed," he sighed, sarcastic blue eyes sizing me up. "Put on some damn pants, Danny. You look like an idiot."

"The great thing about having all male roommates is that I can walk around in the buff without blushing." I grinned at Jackson and moved by him to the fridge. I pulled out the orange juice and choked back a swig. "Good riddance, man. You were always too uptight for this bunch."

"Too uptight?" he laughed. "And Isaac isn't uptight? That asshole does nothing but read and flirt with your little sister when she comes over to gnaw your ear." Jackson smirked when anger filled my eyes.

"Shut up," Isaac called from the living room. "That's not true."

Jackson laughed and continued to pack away the plates. He was too short to reach the top shelf, but hell if I would help the shrimp. Instead, I grabbed a Pop-Tart and went into the living room.

"When is your friend coming over to look at the apartment?" I sat across from Isaac and munched my cinnamon Pop-Tart. He glanced up at me with frustrated hazel eyes. Hair fell in his eyes. His eyebrow piercing gleamed as his head turned.

"Put some pants on, Danny," he grumbled, eyes refocusing on his book.

"No thanks, man." I grinned broadly at the oddball. A knock sounded through the apartment. "Ah, sounds like he's here now." I hopped up and opened the door, a breeze tickling my junk as the door flew back. Standing on our porch was a dude – tall as me with navy blue eyes and broad, muscled shoulders. He looked like a football player and I instantly smiled.

He looked startled that I was so scantily clad.

"Hey…uh… I'm Ethan."


	2. Dimelo

"Ethan." Isaac popped out of his seat and smiled faintly at his friend. I rolled my eyes. The friendship seemed highly unlikely. "Hey, excuse my roommate. He…uh…has good self-image, I suppose." Isaac stuffed his hands down into his pockets and Ethan nodded.

"Doesn't bother me," Ethan affirmed with a smile. "Which roommate are you, exactly?" His eyes on me were unwavering as he waited for my response. His voice was deep. Was it deeper than mine…? I frowned at the new guy, hoping that some sort of competition wouldn't form between us.

Actually, who was I kidding? I loved a good challenge.

Ethan stepped into the house and shut the door behind him. He leaned in to hug Isaac but then…oh shit. He kissed him flat out, on the lips. Isaac pulled away, surprise and embarrassment in his eyes. Ethan laughed – loud, deep, rich - and Isaac smiled, blushing. My jaw dropped as the puzzle pieces fit into place.

Isaac never had girls over. He never talked about girls (he never talked about guys, either!). Isaac…that little fucker…was_gay_. And his boyfriend was moving in.

"Can I have a word?" I asked with gritted teeth, grabbing a fistful of Isaac's shirt. "In your room." Isaac sent me a dark frown and tagged along reluctantly while Ethan peered around the living room.

I shut Isaac's door behind me. He chewed his lip, stared at his hands. "You-You're…shit, Isaac, you're _gay_? I've been living with a fag for two years?"

"Hey!" His eyes finally shot up to mine, filled with anger. "Watch it, Danny. I'm gay, but I'm the same guy you watched movies with all night. Please don't be a fucking homophobe. My opinion of you would seriously decline."

My anger froze at his words. I knew he was right, but I couldn't let _him_ know that. I sighed, pulled a hand through my thick and tangled black hair. "Your boyfriend can't live here."

"Why the hell not?" he spat. "Remember, Danny, this house was mine before you, Jackson, and Boyd came along. It's _my_house."

"And I help pay the rent. I'm not going to have two gays romping around the house. It would be…"

"What? It would be what, Dan?" His eyes were dangerous, even for a skinny little dweeb like Isaac. I didn't know what to say. I didn't like the idea of living with gay men, yet I couldn't give a legitimate reason why it would be wrong. It was just_creepy_. I imagined them together - holding hands, kissing…a shiver ran down my spine. Pleh.

"Whatever, man," I muttered in defeat. "Just don't go prancing around in your underwear together." Isaac's eyes scanned my body, brow arched and humor in the twitch of his lips. Oh yeah. _I_ was prancing around in my underwear. "And tell your boyfriend not to hit on me."

"Yeah," he scoffed. "All gay men are horn dogs that see another dick walking around and can't keep it in their pants. Damn it, Danny, we're in a _relationship_. We're not fuck buddies, OK?" He left, slamming the door after him. I was thoroughly miffed but rubbed the back of my neck in embarrassment.

"I need pants," I sighed into the empty room before branching out in search of some.

When I emerged, fully clothed, Ethan was sitting on the sofa with Isaac beside him. They weren't holding hands, kissing, or making goo-goo eyes at one another. That was a relief. I sat as far from them as possible and my sigh broke the silence. Ethan inspected me with eyes of steel. Apparently Isaac had informed him of our little conversation. And Ethan looked pissed. Jackson entered the living room, carrying a box, and grinned.

"Hey, Ethan," he greeted casually.

"Jackson," he replied with a nod. "Still working on your foosball techniques?"

"A little. I swear, I'll beat you some day. See you guys later." Jackson carried the box to his car and I peered at Isaac through squinted eyes.

"Jackson knew about the two of you?"

"Yep," Isaac sighed, massaging his temple as if _I_ caused his headache.

"Why? Why didn't you tell me? Boyd…"

"Knew as well. I knew how you'd react, Danny. You're such a prick when it comes to accepting people that are different than you. I knew you wouldn't accept that part of me and, frankly, I didn't care." His eyes were so bold and defiant – so different than what I was used to getting from Isaac. I was slightly impressed. I did my best to hide it, though.

"God, OK, I get it. You don't have to go getting all pissy…"

A sticky silence fell over the room. Suddenly, a half-clothed girl tiptoed into the living room. Her blonde hair was matted and frizzed on her head. She wore one of Boyd's t-shirts, which barely covered her thighs. She froze when she saw us and her brown eyes filled with panic. I took the opportunity to wink at her.

"Hey, babe." She blushed and turned to retreat to Boyd's room. I snorted in laughter. When I glanced over at the gay couple, Ethan was staring at me, a peculiar look in his dark blue eyes. I still couldn't believe that someone so…masculine… was gay. Weren't most homosexuals short, skinny fairies with girly waists and thin wrists? Even as the thought sprouted in my head, I felt guilty. Isaac was my friend. I was a dick.

"So…" I muttered, rubbing my palm against my knee. "Um…welcome to the house, Ethan. I'm going back to sleep now." I stood and crept toward my room and then peeled off my clothes. When my back hit the mattress, though, I found myself suddenly wide awake and thinking about the strangeness in Ethan's eyes.

_I hope he's not some freaky stalker._

It was three in the afternoon when I finally ventured back out, wearing pants this time. Ethan was prostrate on the sofa and Isaac clanked around in the kitchen. A deep, overwhelming sense of remorse plagued me after our argument, and I was compelled to address the issue before it ate me up.

"Hey," I muttered and leaned against the kitchen cabinet. Isaac chopped onions, still seeming peeved. "I'm sorry for being so terrible earlier. I was just…surprised. I won't be a jerk anymore, promise." I hoped to God that my eyes were sincere. He sighed, dropped the knife.

"Fine, I forgive you."

I clapped him on the back.

"But you have to apologize to Ethan, too."

I frowned at him and the stubborn look in his eye made me realize he meant business. Reluctantly, I paced toward the living room and sat on the chair across from the sofa on which Ethan was lying. He clenched his fists and visibly tensed.

"Eh, I want to apologize for being so rude earlier. I was wrong and I'm sorry." Simple enough. I waited for his "It's OK" or "Forgiveness granted" but the man only peered at me through squinted eyes. His dark blonde hair was mussed as he lifted up his head and sighed.

"Apology not accepted."

Excuse me? "Um….What?"


	3. Good-old Fashioned Lover Boy

**Truce**

* * *

"Apology not accepted," he repeated, sitting up and looking right at me. There wasn't anger in those eyes. Just cold, calculated determination.

"Can I ask why not?" There was something in my voice…something like _submission_. I realized that Ethan had power over me, if he decided not to forgive my little blunder. The idea pissed me off. What a douche.

"I don't like you, Danny," he stated simply. "I know men like you, and until you make an honest effort to change, we're not cool. You're not forgiven."

The only time I've ever had forgiveness dangled over my head was when my little sister was angry at me for doing something stupid or selfish.

But Ethan wasn't angry. He just made the decision to withhold his forgiveness – his friendship. I didn't know how that made me feel. Pissed? Not really. Just…confused.

Isaac walked into the room then, and my cheeks must've been pink because he looked concerned. "Did you apologize?"

"I did," I sighed, feeling like a child that was tattling on his playmate.

"And?" Isaac's eyes turned to Ethan.

"And I don't forgive him," Ethan returned with a shrug. Isaac scoffed.

"Don't be a dick, Ethan," he spat, making Ethan's eyes flare with anger.

"He wasn't a dick," I input. It was true. He was a perfect gentleman. "It's OK, Isaac, because I think he's right. You can't really forgive someone until they change their behavior, right?"

Both guys stared back at me, Isaac in confusion and Ethan in surprise. I took that silence as an opportunity to get up, grab my car keys, and find another subject to terrorize.

It was dark by the time I parked my car in Vivian's apartment parking lot. Vivian was my little sister – two years younger – and, I must admit, my only real friend. It was pitiful, right? I couldn't afford to feel sorry for myself as I knocked on her apartment door. She opened with a cookie tumbling out of her mouth.

"Precious," I sighed sarcastically, stepping into the apartment and shrugging out of my jacket.

"No, no, come on in," she grumbled. Vivian had dark eyes and black hair like me. People often mistook us for twins, when we were younger and our age difference wasn't so pronounced. She was a cute girl, yeah, but dressed plainly and never wore makeup. When Vivian was growing up, she had a little pudge on her tummy. Junior high was hell, for that reason, and I kicked a lot of ass for my little sis. However, when high school hit, that "pudge" turned into curves and I had to kick a lot less ass.

"You shouldn't eat so many cookies, Viv," I sighed and followed her to her bedroom. There were books sprawled on her bed, as well as a girl. Leslie. I glared at the smug-faced slut. I never understood why Viv was such good friends with such a loose girl. Leslie's eyes appraised me brazenly and I couldn't help but feel a spark of pride when she smiled.

"Hey, Dan, you look great in blue. Has anyone ever told you that?" I glanced down at my blue t-shirt and sighed.

"Hi, Leslie. What are these books…?"

"Danny, no!" Vivian rushed to stop me, but I picked one up and examined the cover. It read _Pregnancy for Dummies_. It took me a while, but I let out a harsh laugh of realization.

"Leslie, you're _pregnant_?"

There was a tense silence before Vivian sighed and laid a hand on my shoulder. I looked at my little sister as she fumbled with her words. "No, Danny, _I'm _pregnant." I _think_ my eye twitched. I grabbed her arm roughly and she glared at me.

"You can't be pregnant. _You're_ a virgin."

"How would you know that?" she muttered, cheeks flushing with heat.

"Oh, trust me, I know. How could this happen, Viv? What got into you? You are in college. You were the one that would make our parents proud…" I stopped as the words fled my lips. She looked pained.

"Don't put that on me, Dan. It wasn't on purpose, but I'm not grieving over it anymore. I'm…dealing with it. In my own way." She was growing up so damn fast. Faster than me. I sighed and sat on the bed, picking up another book. _Single Parenthood._ Oh, fuck.

"Who's the father?" I asked, trying to hide the bubbling anger in my tone. She heard it immediately.

"Remember, Dan, it was _consensual_."

"Scott?" I asked, looking up at her. "That afternoon a while ago…you two seemed…intimate. Is Scott the father?" Scott was a friend of the family. My friend. At least, he _was_.

"Yep," she muttered. "Why did you come here, Dan? I don't want to talk about this anymore." Viv looked tired. I pulled her into a hug, wishing that damn Leslie wasn't around.

"I came over to hang out, sis. Let's go watch a movie or something."

"OK, sounds great," she replied with a shuddering sigh.

"Yeah," Leslie piped in. "Sounds _great_."

Damn.

* * *

I got home late. Threw my keys on the table. Kicked off my shoes. The house was dark and I heard a TV in the distance – probably Boyd's. I sauntered to the kitchen, grabbed a can of soda, and went into the living room. It was pitch black and I staggered to the couch. I found the TV remote and flipped on the power. Light bathed the room and fell on a figure beside me. Ethan sat on the other end of the couch, watching me. I jumped and, _maybe_, yelled a little.

"What the _fuck_ are you doing, sitting in the dark!" My voice sounded a little too shrill for my liking. Mirth gleamed in Ethan's eyes, but he didn't smile.

"I wasn't just _sitting in the dark_. I was _lying_ in the dark, sleeping on the sofa. When you blundered into the house, I sat up and you turned the TV on." He shrugged. "I didn't want you to sit on my face."

"Why are you asleep on the couch?" I spat, feeling more agitated than was merited.

"I fell asleep, nitwit. I guess Isaac decided not to wake me. You, however, are not so kindly inclined."

"Please, it wasn't on purpose. If you're going to be such an ass, living together will be like hell." With that, I rose and left Ethan to stare at his hands. I shut my bedroom door and sat on my bed. I was restless. I didn't know what to do with myself. That's when a soft knock sounded on the door.

"Hey," Ethan whispered as he poked his head into my room. "Can I come in?"

"Sure," I muttered and watched as he walked inside and sat in the armchair across from my bed. He was quiet for a moment before smiling.

"Sorry."

"What?" I laughed. "Are you serious?"

"I'm being mean to you. It's because I know how you feel about… people like me, and it pisses me off. It doesn't give me the right to treat you differently. I know that a lot of people are close-minded and don't really know how to break out of it. It must be really hard for you, being around Isaac and I."

I squinted my eyes at him. "You're weird," I sighed at last. Wise. Kind. Mature. Those were the words that bubbled to the surface, but instead I settled for "weird." Nice one, Dan.

"Yeah, well, being gay isn't the strangest thing about me," he chuckled, flashing his white teeth. "I want us to be friends, Danny, no matter how different we are. I don't want things to be weird. And Isaac seems to like you, so I know you can't be _so _bad."

I smirked. "Isaac likes me?" I wiggled my brows suggestively and he laughed.

"Yeah, but I don't know why." His smile widened. "See you in the morning." He held out a tanned hand. I knew that taking it would symbolize something for me. It would symbolize acceptance of a group of people that, as the son of a preacher, were declared an abomination against nature. Biting my lip, I shook his hand. Ethan left me with a hell of a lot to think about, including the way his bicep flexed as we shook hands.

_I wonder where he works out._


	4. Born This Way

To "celebrate" our new roommate, we went out together, as a group of housemates. Boyd brought that same blonde chick and I tamed my impulse to snatch her out of his clammy grasp, just for the challenge of it. Boyd was a looker, that was for sure, but he was soft. I snorted at the idea of us fighting. Isaac sent me a curious smirk from across the table.

We were at Chili's, waiting for our hot waitress to return and take our orders. I sipped the cold beer provided for me while Isaac traced patterns on his alcoholic lemonade drink. So prissy.

"You didn't bring a girl tonight?" Boyd asked, obviously gloating. His arm rested around the blonde. What was her name, anyway…?

"Not tonight, old friend. But I guarantee you, by the end of the evening, I'll have found one." I winked at his date (who smirked back at me) and Boyd immediately frowned. Ethan chuckled from beside Isaac, stroking my ego quite nicely. Isaac, however, wasn't so thrilled with my suggested mutiny. He had no reason to worry because I wouldn't steal my friend's girl. Not until he was done with her, at least.

The waitress was bouncy and chesty and I reminded myself to give her a generous tip. Working as a night-time security officer wasn't thrilling and didn't pay much, but I could spare a few dollars for such a breasty brunette. We ordered our food – Isaac getting his typical vegetarian crap. Ethan, though, got a burger. What a strange couple…

"So, Ethan," I sighed and smiled at the blue-eyed man. "Where do you work?"

"I'm a college student. Isaac and I go to the same school. I work part-time as a mechanic, though, in my uncle's shop."

"A mechanic?" I questioned, visibly impressed. "Your uncle doesn't care that you're gay?"

"Danny!" Isaac snapped, clearly pissed. Ethan closed a hand over Isaac's, laughing.

"Relax, Isaac. I know he's just being candid. No, Dan, my uncle doesn't care. My family is pretty accepting of it, actually. I'm going to school to be a lawyer, following in my father's footsteps. He doesn't really care if I marry a man or a woman, as long as I get into law school." There was a distant look in his eyes as he said the last part. The words left my lips before I could stop them. Damn brain-mouth link is broken.

"But you don't want to be a lawyer, do you?" My brow arched, even as my throat contracted in embarrassment. Since when was I perceptive? OK, I was perceptive, but since when did I vocalize it? Since when did I fucking _care_?

Surprise and conflict painted Ethan's face. Isaac laughed, smacking his boyfriend (_still so weird). _"Of _course_ he wants to be a lawyer." Smiling, Isaac examined Ethan's crestfallen face. "You do, right?" Silence prevailed.

"New topic," Boyd insisted, slamming his hand down on the table and making my drink slosh around. "Who wants to bet that Danny can't get the waitress to come home with him?"

"That's ignorant, Boyd," Isaac sighed. "We should leave the poor girl alone."

"I like that bet," I confirmed, grinning wildly. I had already considered using my wiles on the young waitress. To my surprise, Ethan slapped a twenty dollar bill on the table.

"I bet twenty that you _can't_." His eyes were playful as they waited for my response. Boyd cheered, choking back his drink before slapping down his own twenty dollar bill. I smiled and pushed a crisp twenty to the middle of the table.

"If I win, I take home sixty bucks. If you guys win, you get to split sixty bucks. Sound good?"

"Make it eighty," put in the blonde. She pushed forward a twenty, flashing her pearly whites. I smiled back.

"What's your name again, sweetie?"

"Erica." Ah, that's right.

"OK Erica, you're in. We'll see how the night plays out."

I drank a _little_ too much. And it took a lot to make my vision swim. When our food arrived, I knew I wasn't at the top of my game. The waitress was _hot_, too, so it really was going to be a challenge getting her to take a drunken dude seriously. What asshole gets inebriated at a Chili's, anyway?

"Hey," I greeted as she set my food in front of me. She looked frustrated.

"Can I help you with something?" The fact that she wasn't swooning at my touch made me thing two things – 1. Lesbian or B. Smart chick. Damn smart chicks, messing up my cool.

"Are you in my psychology class? I think I've seen you." I offered my most innocent smile. Her hard eyes softened. Ahh, she_was_ a smart chick.

"I'm not in psychology this semester. I just started sociology, though. It's pretty interesting stuff." She seemed embarrassed that she'd said so much. "Have a nice meal…"

"Wait!" I called out, making her stop and turn around. "I'm sure I've seen you around campus. When does your shift end?"

"In about half an hour," she replied, looking confused.

"How about you come back before you leave, have a couple of drinks? I want to figure out where I've met you before."

She shrugged, smiling and toying with her hair. Gotcha.

"That'd be OK, I guess." A regular Cinderella. I smiled as she walked away.

Boyd fumed beside me. "That's how you do it, boys." I stretched my arms and folded them behind my head, allowing an arrogant grin to dominate my face. Ethan shook his head, laughing, while Boyd and Isaac seemed a bit displeased. Erica was watching me with heated eyes, impressed by the performance. _Remember, Dan, wait until Boyd's done…_

"How the _hell_ did you do that!"

"Easy. I saw that she was a little hostile, at first, and assumed that meant she was more of an intellectual than boy-crazy. She's obviously a college student."

"You read her well," praised Ethan with blue eyes that captured the gleam of the lamp hanging over the table. "If only you could capture that talent and use it for good."

"Oh, but being bad is so _fun_," I teased, receiving an appropriate chuckle from my only fan. Besides the staring young blonde. Forgot about her.

On schedule, the girl returned after half an hour. She sat beside me at the large booth my group occupied. Her cautious hazel eyes examined the people at the table.

"Everyone has a date besides me," I explained, smiling. She looked at Isaac and Ethan in confusion. "Oh, they're gay." I ignored the glare Isaac sent me and tried not to linger on the wide grin Ethan sent my way and made eye-contact with the waitress. Her name tag read Helena.

"Helena," I muttered, tapping the tag. "Cute."

"That's what a girl likes to hear," she grumbled.

"OK, then, _sexy_. How about that?" I was flirting openly and she wasn't freaked out. "We're about to get out of here…how about you come with us?"

She chewed her lip, eyed the pile of bills at the center of the table, and I thought _Oh, shit._ The girl was smart. She was figuring it out. "Tell you what," she said at long last. "If you can tell me what college I –supposedly _we_ – go to, I'll come with you." There was a clear challenge in her eyes. Oh shit. I was found out.

"Umm…"

"That's what I thought, asshole." She rose and stormed away. At least she didn't throw a drink in my face. Boyd scooped the pile of cash into his arms. Damn, damn, _damn_! Ethan was guffawing like a fool and Erica let out a small giggle. Looked like I would be spending the night _alone_.

We left Chili's and relocated to an actual _bar_. Somehow, I was sandwiched between Erica and Ethan in the booth we occupied. Fucking booths, making my knees touch theirs. It wasn't a "dancing, singing, fooling around" type of bar – just soft, acoustic music and lots of alcohol. Boyd started making out with his date pretty early in, and announced that they were leaving after I finished my first shot of something that burned.

"Oh great," I laughed. "I guess I get to hang with the gays for the rest of the night."

"Danny…" Isaac warned.

"Don't be so sensitive," Ethan chided his boyfriend. "You ever think that maybe this is his way of accepting us – by joking around about it?" Ooh, tension between the happy couple. I ignored them, staggered to the bar in hopes of finding a desperate lady. Instead, I found a pool table. Ethan and I played while Isaac fiddled with his cell phone in the corner. When we decided to go home, it was well past midnight.

I collapsed on the sofa and turned on the TV. The Discover Channell. Isaac sighed and trudged toward his room. "I'm going to bed," he announced. Ethan sat beside me, eyes fixating on the TV. Isaac paused.

"You're going to stay up?"

"For a few more hours," Ethan confirmed with a nod. "I'm not tired." Miffed for some reason, Isaac went to his room and turned on his stereo. Boyd and his girl were at it again. Damn, did she have to be so _loud_? Who was she trying to impress?

Oh right. Me.

"Erica's got eyes for only you, huh?" Ethan asked, laughing. I squinted at him.

"She's with Boyd."

"I know, but the girl likes to keep her options open, apparently. Don't tell me you didn't notice. You're too observant for that nonsense." He was right. I'd noticed, of course, but I liked to play dumb. It kept them guessing.

We watched TV in companionable silence, chuckling when Erica would let out an exaggerated moan or call out, "Oh, yes, that's it!" She was a terrible actress.

Into the wee hours of the morning, Ethan and I made light conversation and watched TV together. When I finally lumbered to my room, I realized something. Ethan was a cool guy. There was serious friend material in that one. It still creeped me out, his being gay, but for the first time it didn't seem like such a big deal.

And that, for me, was a huge step.


	5. Hell Yeah

Thanks to **Guest **who pointed out that I had published twice the 4th chapter instead of this one.

Enjoy!

Oh and if you have time, go check on my two others stories : That Day, a Sterek and The Rules of Engagement, a Lydia/Derek!

* * *

**_Shit._**

_Ethan_

Isaac was acting strangely. I watched as he scrubbed a bowel with a clenched jaw. His jaw always clenched when he was pissed about something. And, if he was mad, his nostrils always flared when he looked at me. I reached out, gently guided his face toward mine, and looked at him flatly. His nostrils expanded before he looked away. I sighed, leaning against the kitchen counter.

"You're pissed."

"Am not," he argued, frowning.

"We've been together for four months, Isaac. I know when you're pissed." His silence only confirmed my suspicions. I groaned, not looking forward to a fight. I hated fighting. It seemed so futile. I wished I could kiss away whatever angered him, but Isaac was not so easily distracted. He wasn't so affected by my touch.

"I'm not going to beg," I insisted. "Tell me or I'll pretend like everything's jolly."

"Go ahead," he snapped. "Everything's jolly. In fact, too make things _more _jolly, maybe you and Danny can get drunk and watch Shark Week together." Ah, so the curtain is pulled back. I couldn't wrap my mind around this one. Did he seriously believe that Danny – fresh out of homophobia – would replace him in my life? Isaac - sweet, soft, kissable… and I'm getting distracted.

"You're bothered that I'm spending time with your roommate."

"Yes."

"Your _straight_ roommate."

"Yes."

"Your somewhat _homophobic_ roommate."

"Yes, damn it, _yes_." Isaac dropped the bowl and faced me. I hated drama. I hated when he cursed at me, when he glared at me, when he treated me like a flighty teenager who couldn't wait for the next opportunity to leave him in the dust.

"You shouldn't be bothered. He's not my type." I grinned, kissed his forehead. "You are." Isaac wasn't buying it. He reared away from me. Damn, that pissed me off. I tried not to show it. Two angry guys meant an argument was inevitable. God, how I wanted to avoid it.

"I saw how you two got all…friendly. He speaks to you for one minute and figures out that you don't want to be a lawyer. I hang out with you, have long conversations with you, _fuck_ with you for _four months_ and I didn't have a clue." His skin was flushed pink in frustration. "He reads you like a book and you like it."  
"Listen to yourself. This is ridiculous. Danny seems like a pretty perceptive guy – he can read everyone."

"I want to be alone, now," he grumbled and I happily obliged. His concern was completely unmerited. Yeah, Danny and I clicked, but couldn't a gay man have male friends without it being a big fucking deal? I realized that I was growing angry and quickly put out the fire in mind. Isaac was just concerned. He cared about me, and he was afraid to lose me.

I went to my room and sat at my writing desk. I was studying for some stupid exam that I was going to flunk anyway. Danny hit the nail on the head when he sniffed out my lack of desire to become a lawyer. It had impressed me tremendously, but at the same time I wished Isaac wouldn't have found out. Isaac encouraged me to follow my heart, and I always assured him that I was. I lied.

There was a soft knock on my door and I figured it was Isaac, come to patch things up or yell at me some more. "Come in," I called, only to find that it was Danny who wanted to pop his big head into my room. I sighed.

"Hey, not happy to see me?" he questioned, smiling like the cocky bastard he was. "That'd be a first. What are you doing at that damn desk on a Saturday afternoon?"

"Studying," I muttered, feeling free to express my disdain. Danny scoffed.

"Boyd and a few friends are meeting me at the park to toss around the football. You play?" His brows were arched, waiting for my answer. He was testing me. Testing to see if I was as masculine as he thought I was or if I was into something more conducive to the gay stereotype – maybe a swimmer or tennis player. I grinned.

"Oh, I play." I felt free to be competitive around Danny. It was the central element of our weird little friendship. Isaac was always so submissive and boring about games. _Why the fuck do I keep comparing Dan and Isaac?_

"Great," he said with a lot of excitement. "Let's go."

I prepared to jump out of my seat and follow him to the park. Then I remembered the look in Isaac's eyes… "Is Isaac coming?"

"That pussy?" snorted Danny, dainty as a butterfly. "He couldn't hold onto a ball if his hands were made of duct tape."

"Let's invite him anyway. Don't want him to feel left out."

"Aww, so cute," Danny grumbled, rolling his eyes in exaggerated frustration. "So considerate of your other half."

"Always," I replied with a cheeky grin. Danny's negative comments about my relationship with Isaac were always laced with humor or teasing. I made the decision to treat it as such and not go getting offended. That decision was rewarding. I liked his jokes.

Isaac came along, just because he wasn't about to let me spend another afternoon with Danny without his careful supervision. It annoyed me, but I didn't say anything. There were about seven other guys, making ten players altogether. We split into teams and the games began. Danny wasn't on my team. We were given the opportunity to tackle one another without restraint in the ultimate contest of strength. We were evenly matched.

At one point, I collided with Dan, wrestling him to his back. I hovered over him playfully, pinning him to the ground, refusing to let him up until he cried mercy. I had bested him and I wanted him to know it.

"Fuck you," he spat when I demanded he surrender. He renewed his efforts to escape, but I manage to force his arms against the ground. I laughed and sat on his legs.

"Looks like you're stuck, then."

"Yeah, well, it's better than surrendering." His eyes glowed with fervor while we tried to catch our breath. In that quiet moment, his muscled body beneath mine, my body chemistry…shifted. Danny flashed a wicked grin before worming his wrist out of my grip and slapping me soundly on the face. It stung like a bitch.

"Eat _that_, ass-wipe." He scrambled away, but not before kicking at me. I watched his retreating form with a slight smile. Damn, he had a nice ass. And that crazed, determined look in his eye was so…_hot_. With a frown, I realized something important.

_I'm starting to _like_Danny._

Isaac was right in his suspicion. Hadn't I grown out of letting straight guys draw my attention away from more important people? Like Isaac.

**_Shit_**.


	6. True Colors

**Electric**

* * *

My stomach was bruised. I lifted up my shirt and inspected the purpling area with a wince. Despite the injuries, I felt good about the game. Playing football was a much-needed released of tension. I sighed, pushed my shirt down, and moved back into the living room. Ethan and Boyd were sitting on the couch and I assumed Isaac was in class. I sighed, sat beside Ethan, and looked at the TV screen. It was covered in fuzz.

"Why are you staring at this screen?" I inspected Boyd's pupils. "Are you guys high?" Ethan laughed. It seems like that guy laughs at everything I say. But he laughs at what Boyd and Isaac say, too, right?

"…and the guy said it'd take a week to get down here." Shit. I wasn't paying attention. Boyd looked at me expectantly. I laughed, rubbed the back of my neck.

"Um, what'd you say?"

Boyd glared at me. "The cable's broke."

"Ah, OK." I fiddled in my seat. "What now?"

"Now," Boyd announced, standing, "I go back to sleep. I bid thee farewell."

"Stop reading Lord of the Rings," Ethan called to him, making Boyd chuckle. There was a stagnant moment of silence before Ethan turned to face me, set those dark blue eyes on me. "It's raining, so no football today."

"Plus I need time to recover. I got the shit beat out of me yesterday." With that admission, I lifted my shirt and turned toward him, showing the massive bruise across my abdomen. His brows knit together.

"Ouch. I hope you don't have internal bleeding or something." He reached out, grazed the bruise with the tips of his fingers, and a shiver raced up my spine. He looked at me, blue eyes tumultuous and thoughtful, and I was dumbstruck. What are his _damn _fingertips still doing on my stomach? With a harsh swallow, I pulled my shirt down and stood up. That was just _too_creepy. The look in his eyes had been almost…

_Plech._ I don't even want to go there.

For some reason, my heart was pounding by the time I sat on my bed. Tiny goosebumps were still raised on my arms. I let out a shuddering breath and shook my head, rubbing away the raised bumps on my skin. I pulled on a hoodie and grabbed a basketball. Ethan watched silently as I crossed the living room and went out the door, into the rain.

The park was empty, and so was the basketball court. It was raining, yes, but I needed to get out of that damn house. I hurled the ball at the goal and it bounced off without going in. Frustrated, I threw the ball again, missed again. Why had I been so affected by a weird moment with a friend? A _gay_ friend, I reminded myself bitterly. The ball flew through the air and finally went through the goal. I sat on the concrete and watched the rain slap against the pavement. My basketball rolled away and into a corner.

My father was a pastor. My mother was the perfect pastor's wife. My little sister was a smart, funny pastor's daughter. I was the athletic, charismatic pastor's son. That life made sense. Our family made sense. Except that Viv was pregnant out of wedlock and I was living with two gays, one of which was becoming a good friend. My parents' perception of me was ruined.

But the strange thing was…

Even though they would disapprove of my life, I felt like I was becoming a better person. A healthier person. A well-adjusted, accepting person. I always prided myself in being rebellious toward my parents. The truth was, I hadn't rebelled in my entire life.

Not until that moment in the rain.

To hell with what my parents wanted for my life. It was _my_ life and _I _had to make my own damn decisions.

With new resolve, I stood, collected my basketball, and hurled it at the goal. It went through, clear and easy. I sighed, closing my eyes as the rain soaked my clothes. _It's my life_.

I took a walk through the unoccupied city streets until I found myself at a Starbucks. I fished my wet cell phone out of my back pocket and found Ethan's cell phone number. I was anxious as the phone rang. _I have to choose my friends._

"H-Hello?" he inquired, sounding confused. "Danny?"

"Want to meet for coffee? My treat, if you grab my wallet out of the top dresser drawer in my room. But don't go shuffling through my underwear, you perv." I smiled when his laugh resounded through the phone line.

"Yeah, coffee sounds great."

"It's the Starbucks by the park, downtown. See ya soon." I hung up and stared at the cell phone in my hands. He was there within a few minutes and he cocked a brow when he saw me.

"You're soaked," he snorted, sitting across from me. Our small table was against the window. Rain streamed down the glass and I watched it with a frown.

"I played a little basketball," I explained, showing him the orange ball that rested under the table. He shook his head, laughing. There was a long, comfortable silence.

"Isaac's worried about me," he muttered unexpectedly. For the first time, Ethan wouldn't make eye contact with me. I sighed, not really wanting to explore the dynamics of a gay relationship with someone that I wished was straight.

"Why's that?" I inquired.

"He's worried that I'm…I don't know, drifting away from him."

"Is he wrong?" I watched the rain rather than the blush that crept up Ethan's neck.

"No," he answered honestly. The simple response held a lot of weight, I knew, and no one said anything else for a long time. At last, he sighed, "I'm going to order." Ethan waved my wallet in my face before going to stand in line. I watched him curiously. My concerned friend radar was going off. You see, people are more than what they say and do. They have motives and purposes for everything. I questioned his motive for telling me that he and Isaac were having problems.

When he returned, he still seemed saddened. I asked myself, "What would a good friend do in this circumstance?" After all, wasn't I trying to be a better person? Clenching my jaw, pushing back all of the anti-gay nonsense that plagued my brain-washed mind, I reached for his hand. It was a simple touch. I just closed my cold hand over his warmer one. His dark blue eyes darted up to me, surprised. I think I saw a flicker of something else – hope, maybe? He smiled warmly, grasped my hand, and ducked his head.

"Things will work out. If it's meant to be, it will work out."

"How do you know if it's meant to be?" I asked, genuinely curious. He shrugged, flashing me a wide, award-winning grin.

"It'll be electric." Just then, lightning branched down from the sky in a brilliant display of blue and white light. I laughed, pulling my hand away from his and burying it in my lap. We drank coffee and watched the sky empty its contents.


	7. On My Own

**Voices**

* * *

Ethan wasn't wearing a shirt.

He was sitting on the couch, eating a bowl of cereal, watching our newly-fixed TV. It was strange for him to be so immodest around us, but after a month of living in the house, it made sense.

While I stood dumbly, watching Ethan watch TV, Isaac stomped into the room wearing a frown. It was the middle of his school semester, the point where he started to get bitchy and reclusive. Ethan went rigid as Isaac stormed through.

I wasn't a fool – I noticed that tensions were high between Isaac and his man-slave. I really didn't want a gay soap opera to unfold before me, so early in the morning, so I retreated to the kitchen and sat at the table, perusing the sports section of the Sunday morning paper. Right about then, my dad would've been stepping onto his pulpit, preparing to preach.

And several years ago, I would've been on the front row, tugging at my tie in frustration and counting the minutes until it was time to go home.

"I have a fuckin' model that has to be built by tomorrow afternoon, so I need this table." Isaac carried a handful of wood and glue into the kitchen and threw it down on the table. I clenched my jaw. Ethan might've taken Isaac's bitchiness without confronting it, but I wasn't about to.

"Yes," I sighed, "well I'm reading the paper." I opened the newspaper wider and relaxed in my seat. I could practically hear Isaac's teeth grinding together. "Just because you're menstruating doesn't mean that I have to pick up my Sunday paper and relocate."

I glanced up to see that Isaac's jaw was hanging open, eyes dark and indignant. I smirked at him. That, apparently, was the last straw. He snatched the paper from me and tore it in half. The pieces fluttered to the ground. I squinted at him, wondering how I should react.

My fist connected with his shoulder, 100% strength, and the shrimp toppled back into the wall. I watched him, waiting for his response. He only looked surprised.

"You owe me another paper," I muttered calmly before sitting down and staring at him evenly. There was little warning as he lunged over the table at me, colliding with my chest and forcing my chair back. We on the ground and the air whooshed out of my lungs.

He was on top of me, punching me in the face, and I was too stunned to react. When I finally got my bearings, Ethan was trying to pull the vivacious creep from my body. I landed one heavy punch to the side of Isaac's face and he went slack, moaning in pain as blood collected in his mouth, coloring his teeth red.

"Damn it, you two!" Ethan shouted in a rare display of anger. "Quit waving your dicks around and _think_ about what you're doing! You guys are supposed to be _friends_, not fucking _apes_." He hauled Isaac to the couch and kneeled over him. With care, he propped up his head and dabbed at his bleeding face with the end of a wet towel. I stood to the side, stunned. My head hurt like _hell_, but for some reason I was glued to that spot.

Ethan turned away from Isaac and inspected me with cold, stony eyes.

"I'm disappointed, Dan." With that, he faced Isaac and continued to doctor his injuries. I clenched my fist, but that sent pain shooting through my arm.

"You're disappointed in _me?_" I scoffed, but he wouldn't look at me. Enraged, I found my keys and went to my car. I sat in the driver's seat for a long time, thinking.

What would give that _fucker_ Ethan the right to sling around his disapproval? Did he think I **cared**? _Obviously, you do because you're throwing a fit in the car when you should be checking on your friend._ I sighed and massaged my temples. My head hurt and I was pretty sure I was bleeding. I pulled down the rear-view mirror to confirm that my jaw, lip, and eyebrow were cut and oozing blood.

I had to admit, Isaac threw a good punch. I won the fight, though, because one punch from me sent him moaning to his boyfriend. _That's unfair, you jackass. Ethan was just being helpful._ That brings up another thing. Since when did I have this annoying voice of reason popping up in my thoughts? And why did this voice sound strangely similar to Ethan's? Laughing, I opened the car door and trudged back to the house.

I knew what I needed to do, and that damned voice of reason wouldn't shut up until I did.

Isaac was sitting up, dabbing at his jaw with a wet paper towel. I felt a flush of heat attack my face as I realized how ignorant my behavior must've seemed. How ignorant it _was_. I sat beside him, ignoring the poisoned daggers he was sending with his eyes. Ethan appeared with a bandage. His eyes on me were so cold.

"Hey," I muttered to Isaac. He still didn't seem too happy to see me. His face was already beginning to swell. Remorse washed over me. "I'm sorry for resorting to violence so easily. I don't know what got into me. I think you were just having a bad day – being a bitch – and I overreacted. I should've just ignored it or called you out for it, not antagonized you." I winced when his fists clenched. He sighed, though, and finally softened his eyes.

"I've been a bitch," he confirmed, but then cleared his throat. "A _bastard_." Oh, so he opted for the more masculine term. I laughed, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Everyone's allowed a bad day," I offered with a shrug.

"A bad _week_," Ethan amended, bringing the bandage to Isaac. That signature half-smile was back on his face and I felt relieved.

"It's lack of sleep," Isaac sighed. "Speaking of which, I'm going to take a much-needed nap. My project can wait." He grunted as he moved down the hall, toward his room. I was alone with Ethan and things were suddenly tense and heavy in our small living room. He sat beside me, in a gesture of friendliness.

"That was really cool of you, apologizing like that." He smiled, flashing a full array of white teeth. "Although, you did make quite the dramatic exit first. Still, what you do in the end is what counts."

"I just got so _pissed_," I muttered, smiling awkwardly. "It wasn't wise, though, punching out a friend like that. I should save my fists for enemies."

"Exactly," he agreed, laughing. "You know, you wear this 'player' persona, but I think you're a really considerate guy, Danny."

"Only because I hear _your_ damn voice in my head every time I act like a child." Oh shit. Did I just say that? Did he _really_need to know that? Ethan took pause at this. His hand was on my shoulder, turning me to face him even though I was slowly inching away in humiliation. Being around Ethan, I gave up so much ground. I kept letting my weaknesses slip, one by one. It was embarrassing.

"Wait a minute." He had that infuriating grin on his face. He was losing his tan, as the weather cooled down. His eyes were full of mirth as he looked at me and I knew he wasn't letting this one go. "Did you say that you hear my voice in your head?"

"Just drop it, Ethan," I moaned, trying to turn away. His hand on my shoulder tightened.

"No, not happening. Did my voice tell you to come in here and apologize?" He was laughing, at my expense. I sighed out my reluctant "yes." There was a pause before his eyes grew strangely serious. "So you're saying…that I make you want to be a better person?" I watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. Why was his voice so intense when he asked that?

"Yeah, you do," I answered honestly, shrugging.

He nodded, a crooked smile on his face. But I knew it wasn't a genuine smile – it didn't reach his eyes. His hand fell away from my shoulder and he stood in complete silence. As he walked away, my brows drew together in confusion.

"What?" I called after him, laughing nervously. "What did I say?" But he had already disappeared into the hall.

I was good at reading people's actions.

But even _I_ couldn't read that one.


	8. You Give Love A Bad Name

**Get It Up**

* * *

Well, it'd been a while.

By some blur of motion that I couldn't really recall, I was prostrate, a girl arching and sighing beneath me. Her pink skirt was riding up her legs, her eyes glazed and pupils dilated. We were on the sofa in the living room and the clock mounted on the wall confirmed that it was 9:30 at night.

Her name was Braeden. We had a date that unseasonably warm Friday night (it was October). I arrived at her doorstep and, before we even got to the restaurant, she was crawling over into the driver's seat and gluing her face to mine. Like I said, it'd been a while, so I was more than happy to oblige when she grabbed my shirt collar and demanded that we go somewhere _private_.

I don't know how _private_ my living room couch really was, but with Isaac and Ethan out watching a movie and Boyd spending the night at Erica's, it seemed OK. Braeden had deeply tanned skin that accentuated her toned arms, legs, and, I assumed, tummy. She was definitely among some of the more attractive women that showed an interest in me. She was a bit vapid, yes, but I wasn't exactly looking for a conversational genius.

I smoothed my hand along the contours of her hip and felt my stomach do that familiar lurch. Our lips met in another harsh frenzy of kisses and her hand inched down my torso, toward my belt buckle. Before it could reach its destination, the front door opened and the light was switched on. Like a deer caught in headlights, I observed the shocked looks on Ethan and Isaac's faces. Their ears were red with embarrassment (I'm sure that the way Braeden's bare legs locked around my hips was sorta provocative). I saw that they were holding hands, making my cheeks burn even hotter.

"Sorry," I muttered, voice hoarse. Braeden looked only slightly peeved.

"Can we go to _your_ room, now?" she asked, leaning near to my ear. I cleared my throat and sat upright, running a nervous hand through my hair. Isaac had a smug grin on his face, all traces of surprise gone. He was used to my antics. Ethan, however, wasn't. His lips were drawn into a thin line and I could tell he was suppressing his real emotions.

"Yeah, let's go." I grabbed her hand and she arranged her skirt before we darted down the hall to my room. She urged me to sit on my bed while she watched me with heated eyes and took off her shirt.

But I was distracted.

My flow was disrupted. I wasn't able to refocus on her, on how ready and willing she was to give herself up to me. She pushed me onto my back, her bare chest pressing against me as she crawled over me. Her hips rocked against mine, her lips lathered up my neck, her hands groped…yet still, I wasn't there. It was like someone threw out my brain. All I could think about, to my utter horror, was that strange, unreadable expression on Ethan's face when he found me on the couch with Braeden.

_What was that about, anyway?_

"You're not even hard yet?" Her shrill voice cut through my thoughts and I snapped back to reality. She was straddling me and…what the _fuck_, my shirt was off. It was almost a laughable situation. Her skirt was gone, leaving only her black lace underwear. I let out a snort, followed by a full-on guffaw. Furious, she dismounted and grabbed her shirt, pulling it on with a scowl. While she dressed, I laughed.

"I'm leaving, you _asshole_." _Not the first time I've been called that…_

"Woah, Braeden, wait," I insisted, though still smiling. "Come back. I'll be a good boy, I promise!" She stormed out of my room, her shirt half-unbuttoned and her skirt rumpled. I followed her through the house and to the door.

She paused with her hand on the doorknob and turned to me, utter contempt written across her face. "If you can't get it up, don't invite a girl over." She slammed the door in my face. Blinking, I turned around to head back to my room and laugh some more. _What a weird situation…_ But I had an audience. On the couch, Isaac was stifling a laugh while Ethan seemed perturbed and thoughtful. He wasn't looking at me. He was still staring at the door.

"Shut up!" I shouted, kicking Isaac in the shin. He broke into unrestrained laughter. "Shut _up_!" I repeated, punching him soundly on the arm.

"I didn't say anything!" he protested, clutching his abdomen and continuing his ridiculous, keening laugh. "S-She said you couldn't 'get it up!' God, where is _Boyd_? Boyd, GET IN HERE!" I clapped a hand over Isaac's mouth and punched him again.

"Boyd's with his girlfriend and you are_not _telling him about this."

"What happened, man? She was seriously pissed." Isaac snorted as the last throes of his laughter subsided. I sat in the arm chair beside the sofa and sighed.

"I don't know. I was distracted."

Isaac's brows arched. "You, the king of all horn-dogs, was _distracted_ when a girl was trying to get in your pants? I don't buy it!" I shrugged, covering my face with my hands.

"I don't know," I moaned. "It was weird." I glared at him. "And I'm not talking about it to _you_, you little bastard." I stood and went to my room, closing the door behind me. I lay on my bed, stared at my ceiling, and tried to figure out why the hell a hot chick in my lap hadn't demanded my full attention. Around midnight, Ethan opened my bedroom door and peered inside.

"Hey, I saw that your light was still on. Can I come in?" I nodded my consent and he sat in my desk chair. "Isaac went to sleep." He smiled. "I wouldn't confer with my ridiculous boyfriend if you felt like talking about what happened earlier."

"You act like it was a big deal," I laughed. "I think I was just tired." Nodding, I decided that it was the alibi I would stick with. Ethan sighed, frowning.

"As long as you say everything is OK, it must be, right?" His eyes inspected me and I laughed at the serious look on his face.

"Everything's fine, Ethan, relax." I threw a pillow at his face, drawing out a slight smile. "Now leave me alone. Can't you see I'm trying to sleep?" He left silently and I sighed.

Everything's fine.

* * *

_Ethan_

I closed the door to Danny's room and leaned against it, sighing. Danny was becoming a concern, for more than one reason. It was bad enough, developing a traitorous attraction to Isaac's roommate and friend. It was made even worse by the fact that Danny seemed to be egging it on, without even realizing it.

When he told me that I made him want to be a better person…

It made my stomach flop, to say the least, and I knew I had to get out of there before I did or said something incredibly stupid. Isaac never indicated that he was a better person when he was with me. _Stop comparing them._

There was a serious transformation happening in Danny, and I felt so privileged to witness it. His inability to…perform… with the young lady that night only made my hopes spike painfully. I had witnessed the slow, agonizing turn of a guy from straight to gay. The steps included the loss of sex appeal for the opposite sex, as the individual realized that they had been burying gay tendencies their entire lives. Still, I couldn't judge Danny's situation. And I couldn't hope that there was a gay man hiding beneath that rough, muscled exterior…

I was with Isaac. Sweet, loyal, bossy, intelligent – Isaac.

Speak of the devil. He called my name, from his room. I opened the door to find him lying on his bed in a pair of shorts and nothing else. My abdominal muscles tightened. Yeah, I was with Isaac. And what a great place to be.

"You're still up," I commented flatly, entering his tidy room and fighting back the urge to compare it to Danny's adorably messy living space.

"I couldn't sleep. I thought I heard you in the hall. C'mere." He held out a hand toward me and I moved toward him through the dark. The moon shone brightly through his bedroom window and cast a romantic but eerie glow on the small room. Isaac's bed was small and we had to be close while on it. I didn't mind.

He sighed, shifted closer to me, and rested his head against my chest. He tapped out the thump of my heartbeat with his index finger, which was on my hip. I closed my eyes and inhaled his scent. "I love you," Isaac whispered, pressing a quick kiss to my neck. My skin flushed with heat. There was one thing that was certain about Isaac. He wasn't afraid of intimacy. I loved that about him. Kissing his forehead, I muttered, "I love you too, Isaac."

There was one definite thing that made Isaac infinitely more attractive and accessible than Danny.

Isaac was gay. Danny wasn't.

If I forgot everything else in the world, I _had_ to remember that.

No matter how adorable Danny's morning face was.


	9. Wanted Dead or Alive

I called Braeden twice the next day, as I prepared for work. She didn't answer, much to my surprise. I felt the strange urge to make things work with her, at least once. I guess I felt emasculated by our escapades the night before. I wanted to prove to her that I could do what men do – what they're supposed to do.

I shoved my shitty cell phone into my pocket and grabbed my keys off the kitchen counter just as Boyd walked in the door. Erica shuffled in behind him, laughing and smiling like a fool. I rolled my eyes. The jackass was carrying a little box. And noises were coming from the box. I walked over to him and peered inside. There was a fat black puppy with black eyes and floppy ears inside it. I groaned immediately.

"No, Boyd, I fucking _hate_ pets."

"Then don't fucking look at him," he spat back. "His name is Vick."

"What a dumb name for a dog," I snorted. "Why don't you name him something _dog_-like? Maybe 'Boyd' would work."

"Shut up," he snapped. "We'll call him Vick."

"Dumbass," I muttered under my breath before leaving for work. I was working another all-nighter, and I _was not _looking forward to it. I hated my job, so much that lately I'd considered actually going to college, just to provide the promise that I could do something besides sitting in a car outside malls and shopping centers.

As I stepped outside, I saw something that made me stop in my tracks.

Isaac was leaning against his car, pressed tightly to it by Ethan's body. They were practically swallowing each other's faces and I felt an uneasy jolt in my gut. Isaac's fingers were knotted in Ethan's hair and, most surprising of all, Ethan's palm was rubbing roughly against Isaac's crotch. Isaac let out an unmistakably male groan, and I felt suddenly dizzy, although I couldn't really explain why.

"Shit," Isaac whispered when his eyes fell on me, his angry red lips tearing away from Ethan's. I must've looked like an idiot, standing five feet from them with my mouth gaping open. Ethan turned to face me, eyes hot and lips swollen. Heat rose all the ways to the tips of my ears and I hurried past them, toward my car._Just look at your shoes and pretend they aren't there._

"Sorry you had to see that," Isaac called out, mocking me.

"Shut up," I heard Ethan mutter as I started the engine and headed to work.

Even as I drove away, I couldn't get the scene out of my head. The strangest, unnamable feeling coiled in my gut. The look on Isaac's face had been so passionate, and the way Ethan took charge of their kiss was so _aggressive_. He dominated Isaac's mouth and manipulated him to mush with the way he palmed his dick through his jeans. I nearly swerved off the road when I realized, with a loudly-shouted expletive, that _I_ was growing hard, just thinking about it.

"Shit, shit, _shit, shit,_" I sputtered, pulling onto the side of the road and killing the car's engine. My heart was racing. _What the _**_fuck_**_is going on with me? _There had to be something wrong. Why else would I, a straight guy, get off on seeing two dudes feel each other up? After a long moment of hectic thinking, I decided, with an uncertain shudder, that I was just too wound up. I needed a chick to fuck and get all the excess testosterone out of my system. _Something_ to relieve the tension building up in me from too little sleep, too much work, and not enough sex.

I vowed to myself, on the side of the road, to banish the images of them from my mind.

Still yet, at work, I saw their lips smashing together.

While I patrolled a parking lot for possible shop-lifters or rapists, I saw their bodies grinding together.

While I investigated a strange sound in a darkened building, I saw the crazed, passionate look in Isaac's eyes.

While I drove home, I saw Ethan's hand groping Isaac's dick.

_I'm a fucking pervert._

I got home, relieved to find that Isaac was alone on the couch, watching TV and flipping through a magazine. I threw off my jacket and kicked off my shoes. Before Isaac could offer a protest, I trudged to my room and fell face-first on my bed. It was eight AM, and I'd worked _all fucking night_, yet again. Sleep dragged me under as soon as my eyes closed.

I woke at 5:00PM, almost ten hours later. With a moan, I sat up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. I felt sticky and cold. A shiver crept up my spine. _Holy shit. _My stomach lurched and churned as I felt vomit creep up my throat, completely out of nowhere. I had just enough time to stumble to my knees and puke into a trashcan. Well, there goes the burrito I had for dinner. Gasping for air and fearing another heave, I stayed on my hands and knees, staring at the brown carpet. My bedroom door creaked open and I glanced up to see Boyd, eating something and observing me with bored eyes.

"Dude, are you OK? I heard you heaving all the way from the bathroom." He smirked. "I was taking a piss."

"Why the fuck did I need to know that?" I grumbled, breathing deeply and forcing back the urge to puke. Boyd's black puppy wobbled into the room and licked my nose. I swatted his snout away and staggered to my feet. Undeterred, the pup (_Vick_) followed me down the hall. So did Boyd, and I realized that he was eating _my_ Ritz crackers. I didn't even care. I just needed water. My mouth felt like a fucking desert.

In the kitchen, Ethan was seated at the table. He had a book open and his head was ducked in concentration. When I opened a cabinet, searching for a cup, he glanced up from his text book. His brows knit together as I chugged glass after glass of water that was so cold, it made me sputter and cough. The fluid in my stomach burbled in warning before I keeled over the sink and threw it all up. Ethan was on his feet in an instant, darting to my side. He caught me, stopping my slow slide toward the ground.

"Damn, you're hot," he muttered, palm flattened against my forehead. I smiled at him and he rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean. And you're clammy, too. Danny, you're sick."

"No shit, Sherlock." It came out as a near whisper, not nearly as smart-ass as I would've liked. I surged toward the sink as another gut-full of water expelled itself from my stomach. My insides felt like they were twisting and contracting, doing everything they could to keep my stomach empty.

"You need to lie down."

"I just slept for ten hours," I scoffed.

He ignored me and threw my arm around his shoulder. My legs felt like jelly as the ground beneath me distorted and wobbled. I staggered toward my room, Ethan my careful guide. My sheets were covered in sweat and Ethan helped me strip them off. I fell onto the naked mattress and groaned as my stomach churned painfully.

"What did you eat yesterday?" he inquired, kneeling beside my bed and throwing off my blankets. I was fucking shivering all of a sudden. I grabbed for the blankets, but he smacked my hand. I glared as harshly as I could, being puny as I was. "You need to sweat the fever out."

"I'm already fucking _sweating_," I spat, curling into a ball.

"You're staying home until your fever breaks," he muttered lowly, plopping a thermometer (where had that come from?) into my mouth. A few moments later, it beeped. "102. If it gets any higher, you're going to the hospital."

"You'll have to _drag_ my ass to the hospital." I handed him the thermometer. "I am broke."

"Get some sleep. I'll hang around."

As my eyes closed, I remembered Ethan's swollen red lips and heated eyes in the theater of my mind. _Still a fucking pervert, even when I'm sick._

* * *

_Ethan_

It was a little past midnight. I checked in on Danny, who had been struggling between sleep and awake for several hours. Sweat beaded his forehead and I knew he was at the peak of his fever. My concern for his health was spiking with every passing moment. I sat in the chair beside his bed as he tossed and turned. I watched his eyes slide open and search the room before falling on me.

"Ethan," he rasped. Concerned, I leaned closer. He grabbed a fistful of my shirt and yanked me closer to him. I was suddenly very glad that Isaac was knocked out on the sofa. My face was way too damn close to his and I knew Isaac would take it the wrong way. His brows were drawn together in frustration as he babbled out something too fast for me to understand. His fever was making him delirious.

"What?" I inquired, trying to pull his hand from my shirt.

"_I'm not gay_," he insisted fervently, eyes glassy and brows drawn together. It was like a slap in the face. I stared stupidly as he released my shirt and closed his eyes again, chest heaving with each breath. The fever had made him delirious, alright. Danny would've never dared to utter those words had he been in his right mind. I sat back in the chair, staring at my hands and fighting back the surge of emotions that rushed through me.

Danny was gay.

And he'd only just begun the first stage – denial.


	10. I'm So Excited

**Cheater, Cheater, Pumpkin Eater**

"What are you staring at?" I sneered at Ethan as I sauntered into the kitchen. I was shirtless and sporting major bedhead. Maybe _that's_ what he was staring at. Ethan was eating cereal at the table, beside Isaac. "It's eight in the fucking morning and no one made _coffee_?" I grabbed a Pop-Tart and sat at the table, frowning in exhaustion.

"You've slept for the last two days," Isaac sneered. "How can you be tired?"

"I was sick," I retorted. "Not that you helped me recover." I tossed Ethan a grateful glance and he smiled. I'd already thanked him for being the one at my bedside every time I peered through the haze of my fever. A lot of the last couple of days was a complete blur. Just a lot of tossing, turning and sweating.

"You going to work today?" Ethan inquired, brow arched.

"Not until tomorrow. Tonight, I have a date." I sighed, relieved that I was going to wash those gay images from my mind forever. Jasmine was an old fling and, in a lot of ways, she was just like me. When I called her, I made it clear that I just wanted sex. And she was elated. This time, we would meet at her house. I'd learned my lesson. No more couch escapades for me.

I lazed around the house most of the day, and even helped Isaac study for a physics test. All those damn numbers and equations seemed absolutely purposeless. Ethan was strangely silent, and around noon he left for classes. I hated how badly I wanted to ask him what was wrong. Our friendship was strange and always changing. I'd grown increasingly uncomfortable around the blonde as he and Isaac seemed to exhibit more and more affection toward one another. It was just unsettling to me.

By the time I was knocking on Jasmine's apartment door, I'd banished Ethan from my thoughts. She was wearing a pair of shorts and a tank top as she tugged me inside by the sleeve of my shirt. "God, you're still hot," she said with a sultry smile, pushing a long strand of platinum-blonde hair from her face. I laughed.

"You don't have to say that shit, Jasmine. We both know what we're here for, so just get naked already." Coming from Jasmine, it wasn't a compliment. She'd say that to anyone, to get in their pants.

"But it's true," she argued, making swift work of the buttons on my shirt. Her hands slid over my chest and I sighed in annoyance.

"Bedroom?" I inquired, meandering down the hall without her. I peered into the first door on the right. There was a large bed at the center of the room, with black sheets and blankets. I went inside and she followed me.

"OK, so no foreplay tonight. I can work with that." She jogged to the bed and lay back on it. "You've never been much of a cuddler. Most guys like to worship the female figure for a while before they get busy."

"Not me," I grunted, feeling suddenly _not_ horny. I sat on the bed beside where she was prostrate and sighed. She reached over and removed my belt. Her fingers plucked at the button of my jeans and all that fumbling around near my groin made my body jump to life again. I rolled over her, pinning her to the bed. Boobs, curves, lipsticked lips. That's what appealed to males. I took her shirt off and smoothed my thumbs over her nipples. She sighed and arched into my touch. But I realized something.

Her nakedness wasn't what made me hard and ready to go. Her breasts, her curves, her appearance…it wasn't arousing. The only thing that made my cock throb was when she touched it. _Shit, is that normal?_ Contemplative, I tried to recall if it had always been that way. With a swallow, I decided that it had.

Well, then… I concluded that I was just a hard guy to please.

Jasmine successfully worked my jeans down over my hips and off my legs. She wiggled out of her own shorts and grabbed my flaccid cock through my boxers. She laughed. "You're less enthusiastic than usual, Dan. Is something on your mind?"

I was catching up quickly as my blood pulsed through my veins, rushing in my ears. I hardened beneath her touch and she seemed pleased, but I was beyond concerned. Something told me that I should be able to look at a girl and be turned on. Kissing, groping, undressing…that part was supposed to be what got me going. It didn't. It never had.

"Please, damn it, just _fuck _me already." She glued her lips to my neck, which made me shudder. It was a weird, almost gross sensation. I was hard, yeah, but I was panicking. The pieces were slowly floating into place as suspicion took root in my mind.

The day I saw Ethan and Isaac together… Just thinking about their kiss had made me hard. But Jasmine, writhing and panting below me with her legs spread… waiting for me… it didn't turn me on like it should've. She surged her hips forward and the tip of my dick prodded at her core. Suddenly, I couldn't seem to catch my breath. I was still recovering from that illness… "I don't feel well," I muttered, rolling away from her.

"Are you _serious?_" she snapped. I shrugged. Frustrated, she rolled over to her nightstand and withdrew a fucking _dildo_. I glared at her.

"What the _fuck_ are you doing?"

"If your dick is broken, this one is working," she grumbled before sinking the black thing into her. It made a wet sound and I groaned. _Gross_.

"Bye, Jasmine," I sighed, zipping up my jeans. That makes two girls that I seriously ruined my chances of ever seeing again. I was already flaccid and completely bored by the time I was driving home. I wouldn't allow myself to think about the night's events. It was a dangerous path. Instead, I went home and sat on the couch beside Ethan.

"How'd your date go?" he inquired nonchalantly. I sighed.

"Same as the last," I admitted. This caught his attention.

"You couldn't…"

"I could, but I was just…I don't know. I didn't want to. Damn, that sounds fucking _ridiculous_."

"Maybe you just need to stay away from girls for a while. Sex doesn't cure all problems, against popular belief." He sounded flustered. I smirked at him.

"I think you're mistaken." With that, I rose and went to my room to _not_ think about how I was unable to be turned on by the body of a naked woman.

* * *

_Ethan_

It was late and again I couldn't sleep. I just stayed in bed, eyes wide open. I couldn't shake the delirium-induced denial Danny had uttered. _I'm not gay_, he'd insisted, out of his mind in the heat of his fever. I knew, though, that the comment was rooted in something deeper.

I was disgusted by how much I'd allowed myself to become distracted by Danny. I thought about him almost constantly – about how real, rough, and honest he was. About how self-confident he seemed to be on the surface, when in reality he was fighting an identity battle of epic proportions. About how insanely sexy he looked in that night guard uniform…

It made sense, that I should develop feelings for Danny. He was everything that Isaac wasn't. I was experienced enough to know, though, that Isaac had many attributes that Danny would never possess, such as verbal intimacy and complete self-acceptance. Even recognizing this, I couldn't stop myself from wishing that I could kiss Danny – one kiss is all it would take – and try to convince the dark-haired deviant that he was, indeed, gay.

I was startled from my contemplations when I heard footsteps in the hall. Curious, I went to find out who would be awake at three AM. I entered the living room to find Danny, sitting on the sofa and staring blankly at the flashing TV screen. "Hey," I muttered, forcing my eyes not to linger too long on his bare chest. I sat beside him. "Can't sleep either?"

"Nope," he sighed, fiddling with his hands. "I am… going crazy," he said with a laugh and I tensed, anticipating the direction our conversation would steer.

"W-Why's that?" My voice cracked and I cleared my throat. Danny stared at his hands, mouth slightly open and eyebrows drawn together. The veins in his neck stood out when he clenched his jaw, emotion clearly written across his face.

"Jasmine was _naked_ beneath me and I couldn't have been more uninterested. I watched her shove a dildo into her pussy and the first word that sprung into my mind was _'gross.' _What the **fuck** is wrong with me?" His conflicted brown eyes turned to me, begging for an answer. But I knew he didn't want to hear the answer I had to offer. He'd probably punch me if I even suggested it.

"It sounds like you're too tense for sex right now. It's not that unusual, Danny. Sometimes you need your emotional needs to be met, not just the physical ones." My words were only somewhat bullshit. It was clear that Dan was one to fill an emotional void with physical quick-fixes.

"How the hell do I do that?" he snorted, a bitter grin painting his face. I swallowed and tried to suck some of the intensity from my voice.

"Just follow your instincts. Visit family."

"My family thinks I'm an idiot." He looked suddenly hurt and my insides burned with the desire to hug him. But that wouldn't be wise… I didn't think I had the strength to pull away, once I wrapped my arms around those broad shoulders.

"Well, is there anyone you can go to who _doesn't_ think you're an idiot?" I inquired, smiling in a vain attempt to make him laugh. He paused for a long moment, eyes strangely intense, before he responded.

"The only person who doesn't think I'm an idiot is you." He said it with such conviction.

Let me just say that I hate it when cheaters try to make excuses for their infidelity. Every one of us has a choice about everything we do. That night, on the sofa with Dan, I had two distinct and very different choices I could've made. I had to pick one. And I did. And I can never take it back.

Summoning the last reserves of my courageous stupidity, I leaned forward and sealed Danny's lips with mine. I didn't give him a chance to push me away – didn't give him a choice in the matter. I only forced my mouth onto his, letting out an instantaneous moan as the warmth of his lips on mine was everything I'd hoped and imagined. My heart sang and my blood hummed to life. I kissed him like my life depended on it, reveling in the soft smacking noises of my lips moving on his.

But wait…

_Isaac is going to beat the hell out of me._

_Uh, _**_Danny_**_is going to beat the hell out of me._


	11. Act My Age

**Denial**

Instantly, I was hard.

I couldn't explain it. I think it was the low, guttural moan that vibrated from Ethan's throat as his lips ravished mine. He kissed the breath out of me, leaving me blinking stupidly and trying to understand why the hell my body was responding so strongly. Finally, I collected my thoughts and shoved him away with all of my strength. He toppled backward, a shocked, impassioned look on his face.

This time, that passion was directed at me.

The concept made my insides burn.

I wiped his saliva from my mouth and let the entirety of the situation wash over me in agonizing waves. I felt a faint revulsion clamp around my stomach and I shuddered, slapping a hand over my mouth. I was trembling. What the _fuck?_

My dick was still hard. _Shit_. I willed it away, but it wouldn't listen. I was too damn worked up. "What the hell was that about!" I shouted and Ethan winced.

"Be quiet," he snapped, standing and crossing his arms over his chest. His face was so red, his stance so rigid. "You'll wake them up."

"Dude, I'm not gay," I scoffed, rising to my feet.

Ethan sent me a harsh look. "Seriously, Danny, try saying that when your freaking _boner_ isn't straining against your zipper." His voice was venomous and yeah, I'll admit, it stung. _He has a point…_

"You just surprised me!"

"I surprised your dick, too? Just by _kissing you_? Danny, don't be a fool." He looked hurt for some damn reason. _He_ was the one who assaulted _me. _I didn't kiss that fucker back. He was a _man_ for Christ's sake!

"I'm not gay," I chanted, not for the last time.

"OK," he sighed. "I'm going to bed." As he walked toward the hall, I felt rage bubble inside me. I clenched my fists but was rooted to the spot.

"I'm _not gay_!" I called after him. He was already gone, though. I sank into the couch. My traitorous body was finally back to normal.

I groaned, rubbing the back of my neck and closing my eyes. The entire situation was a disgrace. Not only was Ethan a dude, but he was the boyfriend of one of my good friends. It would hurt Isaac, to know that Ethan was a cheater, and I sure as hell wouldn't be the one to tell him…for several reasons. No one could ever know about the kiss. I'd never hear the end of it.

At the same time, I couldn't deny that there had been something strangely liberating about it. My body came alive at his touch and it felt _good_. I immediately banished those thoughts and moped to the kitchen. I popped two sleeping pills, enough to put down a rhino, and then staggered to my room. I needed to be unconscious, for a _long time._ I needed to hide.

"I'm not gay," I muttered again, just to hear it in the quiet of my room. It was reassuring, like a pat on the back. _I'm not gay._

* * *

_Ethan_

Oh, Danny was _definitely_ gay.

I've kissed my fair share of straight men, and none of them reacted like Danny. I knew from experience. Straight men reacted with utter disgust, immediately pushed me away.

During my slutty teenage years I chased after straight guys – tried to turn them, as if I were some sort of gay vampire. It was ridiculous and fruitless, but it was how I spent my time. Eventually, though, I grew sick of pursuing emotionally unavailable men. They didn't want me, either, so it was easy to quit chasing after their affection.

Yeah, a straight man would've murdered me for kissing him. They sure as _fuck_ wouldn't have sported wood because of a simple little lip-lock. _If _**_that_**_makes Danny hard, I'd like to show him the other things I can do with my mouth…_

Ah, fuck, those dirty thoughts weren't going to help my situation. I rolled over in bed and punched my pillow into submission. My mind was aflutter with a thousand different things, all of which prohibited sleep. First, I imagined Danny shirtless. When I snapped out of_that_ particular line of thought, I imagined Isaac's face when he found out that I'd kissed his "straight" roommate.

It wasn't a happy face.

My heart sunk into my stomach as I realized just how awful my actions were. Danny was in full-on denial mode and Isaac was officially the victim of infidelity. I'd never been a cheater before, not in eight years of relationship experiences. I didn't know how I felt about it. Was I suddenly a villain? Should I have crept around with a burglar's mask and a bag of money?

Damn, a sleep-deprived brain conjures up weird images and ideas. I covered my head with a pillow and tried my very best not to remember the bliss of Dan's lips on mine.

I wasn't very successful.

I woke feeling and looking like hell. Isaac noticed immediately.

"Ethan, you're all pale. Are you catching that stomach virus?" He pressed his cool palm against my forehead and frowned. "You're not running a fever."

"Just tired," I explained with a huff. It was Saturday morning and I had a breakfast date with Isaac. We were about to leave when Isaac laid a hand on my shoulder.

"Let's get undressed and go back to bed," he suggested, grinning. "You're clearly not up for breakfast, and I wouldn't mind catching some extra sleep this close to my physics test." Grabbing my hand, he tugged me through the halls and to my bedroom.

"You're eager to get me in bed, aren't you?" I laughed awkwardly. I didn't know how, but I was going to make sure that Isaac was going to remain in my life. I didn't want to leave that part of my life behind. I didn't want to lose Isaac. I watched from the doorway as he removed his button-up, red plaid shirt. Yeah, I definitely didn't want to lose Isaac.

His body was wiry. I could see the bones that made up his ribcage as he pulled off the shirt and folded it. He placed it on my dresser in a way that made me question if he were OCD. Next went his jeans, which hugged his hips in a way that I loved. If his body were a map, I knew it very well. It was an innocent moment, but I stepped forward and touched him anyway.

"Mmmh." He sighed as I kneaded the muscles in his shoulders.

His head rolled back to rest against my chest and I let out a shuddering breath. He was shorter than me, so I had to crane my neck around to kiss him properly. His lips were so pliant and responsive. Within moments, I was growing warmer, tenser. I slid my hands down his sides, stopping at the waistband of his boxers to clutch his hips. I pulled him back against me, grinding his ass against my growing erection. He moaned wantonly and, in response, I reached around and groped his cock through his boxers.

"You got something on your mind?" he asked, laughing.

"Yeah," I admitted. "I want to see you cum." I knew what made Isaac moan for me. He let out a satisfying mewl. I stroked him, slipping my hand under the waistband of his boxers. He gasped sharply, the sound sending sparks of arousal through me. "Tell me," I demanded, my voice low with need.

"A-aah…tell you what, exactly?" His hips jutted forward, into my hand as I jerked him off. I continued to grind my erection against his ass as I planted wet kisses on his neck.

"Tell me that you're mine." I needed to hear it. I needed to know that, even though I had screwed up, Isaac still needed me. Needed me like I needed him.

He moaned, bucking his hips as he neared his climax. "I'm yours," he panted, eyes closed. I grabbed his chin and twisted it around so that I could see him more easily.

"Look at me." His eyes opened, dilated and filled with lust. "Say it again."

"I'm yours," he moaned out, intensity seething in those lusty eyes of his. "Nnng…oh _shit_…" With a grunt, he came into his boxer shorts. I smirked as he grimaced, detaching himself from me. "Yuck." He turned to face me, smiling contentedly. "Is everything OK? You seemed…strange."

"Everything _isn't _OK," I laughed. "If you haven't noticed, I'm still pretty hard for you right now."

Isaac looked shocked for a moment, but then laughed. "Oh, I can take care of that." As he dropped to his knees and unbuckled my belt, I had full confidence that he could.


	12. Place For Us

**A Shot in the Dark**

* * *

Damn shoplifters with their damn sticky hands stealing from _my_ damn store. I jogged down the alley, mumbled off my location into the walkie-talkie, and continued to chase the fiend. He was a short guy, wearing black. It had been a quiet night, until that little asshole decided to break into the Best Buy I was watching. He grabbed a box – which probably contained a laptop or something – and disappeared.

If he got away, my job would be at stake. Muttering a curse, I turned corner and found myself between two buildings. It was pitch black – the moon wasn't giving off any light at all. Fear sprinted down my spine, chilling me to the bone. I struggled to catch my breath as I searched for any sign of the thief. I only saw shadows that threatened to move and scare the shit out of me.

My walkie-talkie whirred before my co-worker Mark rambled out, "I don't see the guy, Dan. Looks like he's long gone." Sighing, I leaned against the wall. Suddenly, I heard shoes against concrete. I looked up to see a figure turn onto the side-street that I occupied. When I saw the box tucked under the guy's arm, I darted after him. He got wise, though, and ran away.

I didn't have a fucking gun, and I wouldn't have fucking shot the guy just for stealing. However, when I saw the glint of metal under a street light, I suddenly wished I was the type of security guard that packed heat. Mark had a gun. Mark would've shot the guy dead.

There was one shot before I staggered back and the gunman disappeared. I groped at my shoulder, where the pangs of pain emanated from, and felt something warm…and wet. In the night, my blood looked black. Mark shouted through the walkie talkie. "What the fuck was that, Dan? DAN, are you OK!"

My world was spinning. I lifted the device to my mouth. "Just call a fucking ambulance."

I fell onto my back and watched the stars gleam in the pitch black sky as a haze covered my mind.

* * *

_Ethan_

The phone was ringing. My cell phone wasn't…the house phone, though, was ringing. _That thing never fucking rings._ I heard Boyd stagger out of his room, muttering a curse of his own. Isaac's bedside clock warned me that it was 3:15AM. Something was wrong. I could sense it.

"Isaac," I whispered, jabbing him gently on his shoulder. He moaned and shifted beneath the sheets, but never woke up. Moaning, I staggered out of bed. As I walked down the hall, I heard Boyd's voice.

"What?" he asked, voice gravelly. "Yes, this is the house of Dan-fucking-Mahealani. Who the _fuck_ wants to know at _3:00AM_?" I stepped into the kitchen, where the phone was plugged into the wall, and saw Boyd's expression change from aggravation to concern.

"Who is it, Boyd?" I inquired, not liking the croak of my own voice.

"What…what hospital?"

_Oh shit._

"Boyd, what's going on?" I stepped closer as Boyd knotted a hand in his hair and leaned against the counter, is if looking for something to support his weight. "Boyd…"

"We'll be there soon. Just…Just call his parents, OK. Um…bye." Boyd slammed the phone on the receiver and turned to face me. "Dan was shot."

The next few moments were a blur of panic as we woke Isaac and got dressed. We piled into my car and headed toward the hospital where they were keeping him. "Did they say where he was shot? What happened?" My arms were shaking, as I steered the car down the road, toward the place where Danny could've been hanging on for dear life.

"No, they didn't fucking say," Boyd snapped and shifted anxiously in the back seat. Isaac stared out the window, watching the street fly by. I grasped his hand in mine.

"He'll be OK," I consoled.

But in all honesty, I didn't believe it myself.

We arrived at the hospital and the three of us ran all the way to the emergency room. The woman at the desk directed us to the second floor, where Danny was apparently in a room already. Confused, we hurried to room 2-G. On his bed, Danny was shirtless, his shoulder wrapped in white gauze that was spotted with blood. We crowded around him, but I was at the head of the group.

"Damn," he croaked, grinning, and something in me sighed with relief. He was still _Danny._ A part of me expected him to be some sort of brainless vegetable. The mind contrives the worst. "It took you assholes long enough to get here. I got here just after midnight."

"What happened!" demanded Boyd. He crouched beside Danny's head and grinned like a fool. I relaxed a little, seeing that Dan was awake and aware of his surroundings.

"Some dude shot me, in an alley way no less." Danny snorted and pointed to his bandage. "He got my shoulder and it hurt like hell, but I'm fine. They plucked the metal out of me and wrapped me up. I'll leave soon." His eyes darkened. "Which of you dicks told them to call my parents?" Boyd laughed, raising his hand.

"I didn't know how serious it was. I was scared, Dan. The chick on the phone made it sound like you were fucking brain dead."

"I just needed a ride home from the hospital. Damn. Now my dad is on his way here and…"

The door creaked and we all looked to find an older man walking into the room. He saw Danny, lying on the hospital bed, and something in his eyes shifted. It made me shudder, to see such unbridled love in his eyes, and I knew immediately that it was Dan's father. He was graying, but had those same dark brown eyes as Dan. He staggered forward and grabbed Danny's hand, pushing Boyd out of the way.

"Hello, Mr. Mahealani," Boyd greeted with a tamed smile.

"Danny…" the man muttered, eyes dark with concern.

"Dad," Dan sighed, smiling. "It grazed my shoulder. They rid me of metal and now they're sending me on my way. Don't worry about it. I'll tell you about it tomorrow but, if I remember correctly, you have a sermon to preach in the morning."

"The church will do fine without me for one morning," chuckled the older man.

"Where's mom?" Danny glanced at the door, looking worried.

"Sleeping. You really think I told her about this? She's better off not knowing."

"Allison, too?"

"I won't tell if you don't."

I watched them interact, amazed. My father and I… it wasn't so great.

I was just so happy that Danny was fine. Whatever that meant, I didn't care. I just couldn't imagine a world without him.

* * *

_Isaac_

Dan's dad left and I relaxed a little. The preacher always made me nervous. I sat across the room, in the only comfortable chair. Boyd texted on his phone while Ethan kneeled beside Danny, laughing and chatting with my dark-haired friend. As I sat there, watching the way Ethan's hand grazed Danny's, I felt a sense of doom wash over me.

Ethan was slipping away from me.

And there was almost nothing I could do about it.

_Almost_ nothing.


	13. The Days

**This is Halloween**

It was Halloween. I usually dressed up as a dead football player or something, but with the memory of a gun being fired at me… death was still a touchy word with me. My wound was healing slowly, it seemed. I changed the bandage every morning, even though it was no longer bloodied when I awoke.

The night of Halloween, I planned on staying at home and watching all of the ridiculous horror movies that came on Chiller after dark. The rest of the house, however, had plans. That became obvious, as I emerged from my room to begin my quiet evening alone. Boyd and Erica were in the living room. I was surprised that Boyd was still calling the chick his girlfriend, considering how nonstop her flirtations with me had become.

She would've called what she wore a costume, but it was more like something you'd see on a street corner, on the bad side of town. She had on black underwear with fishnet stockings and a black corset. Sitting atop her carefully-primped head was a pair of bunny ears. I scoffed as I passed her. Boyd, on the other hand, had a face that was painted green and marred with fake scars and blood. His clothes were tattered – a pair of jeans and an argyle sweater that looked like they had been in the blender.

"I'm a zombie, dude," Boyd chuckled, and I could tell he was already a little tipsy.

"I deduced that," I mumbled and went to the kitchen, searching for those pumpkin-king cupcakes that Isaac made… Ethan was at the table with Isaac, helping him paint his face a chalky white color (not that Isaac wasn't already pale).

"So original, Isaac. Are you going as a vampire?" I inquired, looking at Isaac's fake pointy teeth.

"Let me guess now… are you going as Einstein?" Isaac smirked playfully at me and I let out a harsh laugh. Yeah, my hair looked like Einstein's. It didn't matter – I was staying in.

"I can't believe you're bailing on the party," Boyd called from the living room.

"Why aren't you going?" asked Ethan, who had on all black clothes and a nametag that read "Tom." I squinted my eyes at him.

"What are you dressed as?" I quizzed, watching the twinkle of amusement spark in his eye. Ethan reached for something that was under the table. When he showed it to me, I realized that it was Styrofoam, cut in the shape of and painted to look like a normal window. Ethan looked through the window and smirked. I cocked a brow. "I don't get it."

"I'm a peeping Tom."

A long pause. "You're a dick."

"I know," he sighed. "I don't want to paint my face or wear fangs. So I got creative." He smiled again and I wished he would stop. "You can do the same – go as a cheating husband."

"How would I do that?" I snorted.  
He walked over to me and I watched him in curiosity. I was wearing a red and black plaid button-up shirt. He unbuttoned it and Isaac's eyes went wide…mine did, too. "Whoa, what are you doing?" I protested and tried to push his hands away.

"Be patient. You'll see." He re-buttoned the shirt, but the wrong way. The shirt was already wrinkled, and I started to understand what he was doing. With a shirt that was buttoned the wrong way, wrinkled clothes, bed-head… It would look like I'd just come from an affair. I would be a cheating husband.

"I should put on some ladies perfume, and have lipstick on my neck." I smiled as the idea started to sound more interesting. Isaac had a dark look in his eyes and I wondered, for a brief moment, if he didn't want me to go with them. The thought was short-lived, however, because I soon felt lips on my neck.

"Erica!" Boyd called out. She pulled away, her lipstick smudged.

"There you go, stud." Winking, she trotted away in her trampy clothes. I shuddered. She returned with a vial of something pink and splashed it on my clothes. "And now you smell like a woman."

"Gee, thanks," I muttered and then turned in a circle for Isaac and Ethan to see. "What do you think? Do I look like a cheater?"

"Yeah," Isaac grumbled, and there was something in his voice that pissed me off.

"So are you coming with us?" There was excitement in Ethan's eyes – excitement that I didn't want to see vanish. I nodded.

"Why not? I mean, it's not like my shoulder is bothering me much anymore. And I don't have to work." I saw the compassionate spark in Isaac's eyes. Yeah, I didn't have to worry about going to work.

My boss fired me after the shooting. I considered suing him, for wrongful termination, but he showed me video he caught of me sleeping on the job and I decided I would be better off leaving silently. Work was hard to find, when you had no skills or education. Ethan's constant insistence that I go back to school was starting to wear on me. It sounded like a good idea, actually.

"Great. We'll take my car – you, Isaac, and I – and Erica and Boyd can take Boyd's car."

"Sounds good to me," I replied with a shrug, mentally considering the location of my sneakers.

"Are you sure you want to ride with us?" Isaac quizzed, folding his arms across his chest and leaning back in his chair. "After all, if you want to go home with a girl, you'll want to be able to leave whenever you can."

There was a tense silence, and I didn't miss the way Ethan fidgeted in his seat. "Um, don't worry about it. I'm swearing off females for a while." I shot Erica a glare and she pouted her full red lips.

"Let's go," Ethan grumbled, suddenly testy and ready to move. We shuffled one by one to our respective cars, and I found myself in the backseat of Ethan's car alone.

The party was at a mansion – one of Boyd's rich friends who none of us liked, but kept around anyway. It was packed, and as soon as we arrived Boyd and Erica disappeared in the crowd. I followed Ethan and Isaac like a lost puppy. They weaved through the crowd until we arrived upon the source of alcohol. I greedily chugged back a cup of liquid courage and leaned against the wall, to observe the seething group of costumed strangers.

"Let's dance," Isaac called out, grabbing Ethan's hand. Ethan laughed and followed him onto the "dance floor," which was really just an area with a rug. The music was typical Halloween nonsense – creepy techno music with the occasional church organ or demonic chuckle. Ethan and Isaac didn't go far into the crowd. I could see them clearly from where I watched along the wall.

A few women asked me what I was dressed as, and laughed when I told them, but I was distracted. I watched as Isaac tugged Ethan close, knotting his hands in his shirt. Their foreheads touched as their bodies moved together, suggestively but innocently, too. My attention was really snagged when Isaac grabbed Ethan's face and smashed their mouths together in what seemed like a never-ending kiss.

God, my blood burned in my veins and the worst part was that I couldn't fucking explain it away! A girl, dressed in almost_nothing_, walked by me and all I could see was a brief view of tongue as the gay couple continued to make-out on the dance floor. Every once in a while, Isaac's eyes would flicker to me and I thought that I saw him smirk.

I tipped 'em back – cup after cup of expensive beer – until Ethan's face seemed blurry. _Whydafuck am I looking at Ethan's dumbass face, anyway?_ At last, their ridiculous kiss ended and Ethan's eyes shot to me, almost instantly. There was something truly indiscernible in that gaze, but I was too shit-faced to care. The party was warping and blurring around me as time seemed to fly. I knew it was past midnight. And they were still-fucking-dancing. Ethan's eyes drilled into mine before Isaac reclaimed his lips and ground their hips together. My blood boiled. I couldn't take it anymore. Snarling, I walked away to find someplace less… intense.

I found myself in an empty room, with a sofa and a plant. I sat on the couch and, glancing around, saw all of the fancy breakables on glass shelves. I realized, with a snort, that I wasn't supposed to be in _that _particular room. I didn't care. I wanted to be alone.

And that's when Ethan came staggering in.

"What do you want?" I muttered, staring at my hands while he sat beside me.

"You left so abruptly. I… was concerned."

"You mean I stopped watching your public make-out contest so abruptly that it concerned you, right?" I dared a glance up at him. His face was red, his blue eyes seeming black in the dimly lit room. "We aren't supposed to be in here," I muttered awkwardly.

"You're OK, though, aren't you? You seem…" He licked his lips. "Upset."

I let out a laughing sigh and shook my head, feeling my thoughts and actions drift just a little bit out of my direct control. I was on autopilot, at liberty to whatever popped into my mind. "Remember when you kissed me?" It was something we never spoke about, but I went there anyway. I felt the strange need to bring it up – to remind him that, once, he exhibited the desire to kiss me like he kissed Isaac.

I watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. "I remember." There was a familiar heat in his eyes. Something in me sparked as I recognized it – it was the same look that he gave me, the night he kissed me. The night a fucking _man_ kissed _me_. The night I couldn't seem to forget or reason away.

"Why did you do it?" I knew why – he had a thing for me. A sick, domineering part of me wanted to hear him say it. I wanted him to remember me, so soon after getting a handful of Isaac's little ass.

"You know why," he deflected, a dark look crossing his features.

"Say it," I demanded, but my eyes begged with "please."

He swallowed again, licked his lips, and dropped his eyes. "I wanted to."

"Why?" I prodded.

"Because," he sighed at last, meeting my gaze. "Because I think I'm in love with you, alright?" There was a sharpness to his voice that stabbed through me, even being a little drunk. I knew I was wandering into new territory, but I couldn't seem to care. I was sick of fighting those "gay thoughts" that haunted me, ever since that kiss. I knew that something wasn't right in me – a straight man would've been repulsed – but I didn't want to think too much about it.

I didn't want to think too much about what I did next, either.

The fluttering feeling inside my gut threatened to stop me, but my lowered inhibitions worked miracles as I leaned forward and kissed Ethan, flat out. His lips were pliant, but non-responsive. It made me angry, that I would stick my neck out like that and he wouldn't respond. Growling, I grabbed either side of his face and kissed him harder. _That _earned a reaction.

A fucking hot reaction.

* * *

_Ethan_

I thought "this is wrong" for one second before I gave in.

His lips were too damn hot, too damn insistent, too damn _demanding_ that I respond. So I did. When he grabbed me and crushed our lips together, I moaned aloud and pushed my tongue into his mouth. His hands were on me instantly, grappling blindly with my clothes and trying desperately to pull me closer. I tasted the alcohol on his tongue, but I didn't care.

I helped him, instead of stopping him. I moved closer, knotted my fists in his shirt and forced our bodies flush against one another. The hardness of his chest against mine made me want to scream and hide all at once – it was too much, a true sensory overload. We kissed _violently_, crushing our mouths together in a not-so-tactful but entirely hungry kiss.

Before long, he pushed me onto myback, and I relished in the rarity of being dominated. I opened my legs for him, allowing his hips to settle between them. Immediately, his hips ground against mine and I thought, "I can't-fucking-believe this is happening" before bucking my hips up to grind right back. He was aggressive and hot and demanded all that I could give. It affected me so strongly that, before I could question my sanity, I had my hand down his pants.

Danny's resulting moan set my skin aflame. He bit my neck and sucked _hard_, giving me good reason to moan right back at him. That's how we were arranged – prostrate with my hand groping Dan's dick – when Isaac finally caught up with me.

The look in his eyes was enough to turn my stomach.


	14. The Nights

**Realizations**

_Isaac_

Ethan broke away from me and left me standing alone, on the dance floor. I was immediately suspicious because Danny was no longer leaning against the wall in the spot where he'd been all night, watching us. Ethan either needed to puke or he ran off to find Danny. So that left one thing for me to do – go find them both. At the time, I wasn't at all worried about what I would find.

The crowd parted around me as I poked my head in every door along the mansion's long hallway. I got hung up outside the bathroom, which had the typical bathroom line that wound around the entire freaking house. It took me a long while to finally poke my head in the right room, and I heard an unmistakable groan. My ears were perked as I stepped forward until the sofa became visible.

There they were. Danny was on top of my boyfriend. It was something I never expected to see, _ever_, no matter how far Ethan drifted from me.

It was like dying, standing there, because our relationship flashed before my eyes.

Ethan and I met at his uncle's shop, although I'd seen him around campus. It was July, and my tire popped like a balloon on the highway. The tow truck took me to the closest mechanic, since there was smoke billowing from beneath the hood of the car, too.

The shop was grungy, like you would expect. Ethan greeted me inside the air-conditioned lobby. He had grease all over his shirt and, as he smiled at me, washed the grease from his hands. It went to his forearms, and even smudged his face. Ethan's hair was disheveled and his eyes were bright as he stood there, noticing me for the very first time.

"You need help?" he inquired. I was a little speechless, standing in the lobby and watching that gleam in his denim-colored eyes. He fixed up my car, and even let me sit on a bench in the garage and talk to him while he did. We talked about school – he was in law-school, I wanted to be an engineer. I laughed with him as I tried to explain the relationship between physics and the mechanic work he did every day.

"You're a smart guy, Isaac," he complimented as he handed me the key to my car. Half-smiling, I stared at my hands.

"You are too. And a grease monkey." He laughed, a loud and comforting sound to my ears. I couldn't help but grin back at him.

"We should hang out," he muttered, staring at his shoe. "Maybe go and play pool sometime, or something like that."

_Something manly_, I thought with a frown. "I suck at pool."

"Then Ping-Pong," he amended, grinning. "It'd be fun. I'm sure of it. Are you game?" The question was in his eyes, but I knew better than to get involved with someone that I liked so much, that was so funny and kind, when he was clearly straight. Sighing, I shook my head.

"I don't think it would be a good idea…"

Ethan frowned. "Oh. OK…but why?" He was a persistent fuck, that was clear.

"It just... it would be fun for you, I'm sure, but I think it'd be more like torture, for me." I laughed weakly and he looked thoroughly confused. _There you go again, Isaac, being a complete enigma and wearing your heart on your sleeve._

"Why?" He smiled, stepping closer to me. "Do I smell _that_ bad?"

It was funny, but I didn't laugh. Wincing, I let the appropriate words slip from my lips. "Ethan, I'm gay… so I don't think we should hang out, because-"

"I'm gay too," he input, eyebrows shooting up.

And that's when I allowed myself to become infatuated – to fall deeply in love without hopes of being freed from Ethan's spell. Standing in that mansion, in the dark, watching the bewildered and remorseful look on Ethan's face… I knew that I would never be freed from his web. I choked back the tears. I wouldn't fucking cry.

"Let's go, Ethan."

"W-What?" he inquired, stunned. He looked thoroughly kissed. It twisted my gut, knowing that someone else was responsible for it. Ethan staggered to his feet and approached me. I didn't shy away when he roped me into a hug.

"Let's go. Danny can find a ride home. Let's just leave, _please_." The look in my eye must've been so desperate that he consented, despite how obviously strange my reaction seemed to be to him

But I loved Ethan. Nothing would change that, not even a little infidelity.

* * *

_Ethan_

It was quiet, as I directed my car toward home. Isaac was staring at his hands, which were folded into his lap. I definitely wasn't in the mood to talk. I felt like a child, caught with his hand in the cookie jar, except I was caught with my hand in Dan's pants. The weight of the situation threatened to crush me and I watched Isaac carefully, curious how he would react once he had some time to think about it.

We got home and the lights were out. I flicked on the light in the living room as Isaac took off his vampire teeth. There were streaks in the chalky white makeup he wore, and I realized he'd been crying. My insides screamed. I caused his pain.

When his hand grabbed my wrist, I gasped in surprise. Domestic abuse was _so_ not going to go over well with me, although I knew Isaac deserved to beat the shit out of me. But he wouldn't. I knew Isaac, and he wouldn't handle the issue with violence.

Of course, I never would've imagined that he would handle the issue with sex, either.

He jerked me into his room and slammed the door. His eyes were fierce as he stalked toward me and crushed our lips together. I was concerned for his mental health – _what is he _**_thinking_**_?_ His tongue wrapped around mine seductively, and I let out a muffled moan.

"What are you doing?" I asked, out of breath, when he pulled away and worked on getting off my shirt. I groaned when his mouth closed over a nipple. He bit it, teasingly.

"Making this better," he muttered.

"How?"

"By making you want me again." He stripped then, until he was completely naked. I swallowed thickly and tried to ignore my evident arousal. Isaac was obviously hurting and it was no time for sex. He pushed me onto the bed and I let him, careful not to touch his naked body. Once I did that, I would be lost…

"Pants. Off." He let out a choked moan when he grabbed his own erection and jerked it wildly. It was so fucking hot, all thoughts that didn't concern his body flew out of my head. I became very compliant, then, and wiggled out of my pants. Isaac grabbed my dick and rubbed it against his. I gasped. _Oh, shit…_

When he lubed my cock and posed it at his entrance, I had the fleeting thought that we were doing things the wrong way. If we wanted to mend our relationship, we would need to sort through everything by talking it out. He would need to forgive me, and I would need to earn his trust again. But as he sank down and that wet heat encased me, all rational thoughts were slapped from my mind. His body had a great way of distracting me…

My hips bucked up to meet every motion of his hips. I stared at his face – red and raptured – as he rode me like a horny freak. "I love you," he babbled, fingernails clawing across my chest. "I love you so much!"

I couldn't speak, as the heat pooled in my gut. A few wild bucks into his warmth had me falling over the edge. White-hot pleasure swallowed me at the same time that Isaac spilled himself onto my stomach.

Gasping for breath, he came to lie beside me.

"I love you, too," I muttered into his hair, kissing at his neck while he curled into my side and closed his eyes.

Even now, I know that I was telling the truth. I _did_ love Isaac, and what I did and would do to him was just…horrid.

* * *

_Danny_

**…**

**…**

**…**

_Fuck._

I was alone on that expensive couch. I knew that Isaac would hate me, but more importantly I knew that I would never be able to go back. I was gay. It was official. There was no way around it. The emotions associated with that realization were like a cloud of locusts, devouring everything I thought I knew about myself. It made feel like I was going to implode, all over the fancy red carpet.

In a way, I was relieved that the inner turmoil could abate some.

But then I considered my life…

And as I rode out wave after wave of realizations – how my life would never be the same, how my family would hate me – I knew that Ethan had left me alone. I knew that Ethan understood the magnitude of what I'd done – of finally giving into the chemistry between us – and still, he left me alone to deal with it all.

For that, I hated Ethan.

But when I thought about the way his hand grabbed my dick, the way his moans made my blood burn, the way his tongue invaded my mouth… I knew that there was a strong possibility that I would try and pursue Ethan.

Despite Isaac.

I fell asleep on the couch that night, and woke up to the weirdest pair of green eyes I've ever seen.

I'm going to create a poll for "Don't Panic" and its end. I have two idea: one will involve an approximate total number of chapters of 40 while the other will end the story in five chapters tops.

So yeah.

Go vote!


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